Exercising for an Hour Keeps the Weight Off

If you want to lose weight and keep it off you need to exercise for at least an hour a day, five days a week, according to a new US study.

Many women struggle to lose weight on various diets and of those who do manage to drop a few pounds, the majority put the weight back on again. Official recommendations state that men and women should be active for at least 30 minute per day for health. But this latest research by The University of Pittsburgh suggests that we need to double this if we want to lose weight and stay trim.

The 2-year study looked at a group of overweight and obese women. All of the women were restricted to 1,200 - 1,500 calories per day and split into 4 different exercise programmes of varying intensity and length.

After 6 months, all the women had lost an average of 8% - 10% of their body weight. However, few of them were able to keep the weight off. Those who were successful at maintaining their new weight did the most exercise – an average of 275 minutes per week. The successful group were also more likely to eat less fat and follow a healthier diet.

The research was published in the Archives of Internal Medicine journal and reported on www.bbc.co.uk

Posted Thursday 7th August 2008